Page 89 of Ride With Me

“This is fucking stupid, Warren,” I scolded myself. “You don’t know him. He broke into your truck. Don’t be an idiot.”

I slammed the truck door shut to punctuate the word, then slowly trailed into the diner after Benji with his bag slung across my shoulder and my mind already made up.

Apparently, Idiot was my middle name.

He was sitting in a booth in the corner of the all-night diner, staring at a menu like he could somehow set it on fire with the black color of his eyes. He didn’t even glance up when I slid into the seat across from him, but hedidmutter that he’d like a cup of coffee when the waitress came by and asked us what we wanted.

“Make that two.” I offered her a smile, and watched in amusement as a blush crossed her cheeks. She wrote down the order with a quick nod and left.

“Gonna threaten her, too? Tell her how you could kill her, and she shouldn’t flirt with you?” Benji’s voice was soft enough that I wasn’t worried about the waitress hearing him, but that didn’t stop me from letting out a low grunt.

“Stop that. I didn’t threaten you. I just wanted you to realize that you could have landed yourself into a lot of trouble taking a chance like you did.” If I told him I wanted to protect him, would he even listen? It wasn’t like he knew me. It wasn’t like he had anyreasonto want to be protected, right?

Except, he’d climbed into the back of a stranger’s truck with no real plan except to get the fuck out of dodge. So…

“Yeah, right. Or maybe there was something about you that told me I was making the right decision.” Those dark eyes glared at me in challenge, like he was waiting for something.

He was still staring when the waitress brought back our coffee, and he only stopped long enough to order a stack of pancakes with extra syrup before he turned his gaze back to me.

“What about you, sugar? You want something sweet, too?” The waitress was smiling at me again, but it was hard for me to tear my gaze away from Benji’s narrowed glower.

Fuck. He really was something to look at. All pale skin and rumpled hair… and those eyes…

Dark like the sky at night—my favorite thing. It’s why I loved driving when most people were asleep.

“Nothing for me, thanks.”

I heard her small, disgruntled noise.

“Are you sure I can’t get youanything?” I could hear the intention in her voice… and so could Benji. He slowly lifted a brow while he stared at me across the table.

“I’m sure.” I still didn’t look at her, but I did hear the way her heels clicked a little harder than they had before when she muttered a huffyall right thenand marched away. I waited until she was out of earshot to speak again. “Listen, I didn’t mean toupset you. I just… we’re strangers, Benji. You don’t know me. You couldn’t haveknownI was a safe bet when you got into my truck.”

He completely ignored me and let his eyes track after the waitress. “You were rude. Couldn’t you tell she was flirting with you?”

“Not my type,” I said without missing a beat.

“Whatisyour type?” I didn’t think I was imagining the way his voice got a little softer, a little huskier. Maybe I wasn’t the only one who felt an instant attraction.

“Oh, you know… small, slender, pretty.” I shrugged and took a sip of my coffee.

“I don’t know if you weren’t paying attention, but that’s pretty much exactly what she?—”

“Wrong equipment, Benji.” When he just stared at me, I let out a soft laugh. “I’m gay.”

He bit his lip to hide a smile, and it was still there a few minutes later when the waitress brought him out his pancakes and left without saying a word.

“So…” He pulled out his fork and knife and carefully started cutting the food in front of him into neat little slices. “About that ride?”

He sounded hopeful.

I honestly should have told him my answer was the same. I should have handed him his bag and offered to pay for his meal and gotten back into my truck… but I was already making bad decisions.

I wasflirtingwith him.

And I damn well knew what I’d come in here for before I’d gotten out of my truck in the first place.

“I’m going east. Won’t stop for a week or so, other than to sleep. Does that sound like something you can handle?”

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